The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), in collaboration with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has convened a two-day stakeholders’ workshop in Abuja to drive the implementation of the Committee on the Protection of Migrant Workers (CMW) recommendations.

The International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1990, to which Nigeria is a signatory, is a comprehensive international legal framework for migrant workers’ rights.

Declaring the workshop open on Wednesday, executive secretary of NHRC Tony Ojukwu, SAN reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to ensuring that the rights of migrant workers and their families are safeguarded.

Ojukwu, represented by Jennifer Aga, Deputy Director, legal at the NHRC, emphasized the need for stakeholders to take proactive steps in upholding these rights.

In her welcome remarks, Easter Michael Sawa, Human Rights officer at the UN Human Rights Office, noted that the workshop aims to contribute to the implementation of key recommendations from human rights mechanisms, particularly those from the CMW.

At the end of the workshop, participants are expected to be better equipped to promote and protect the rights of migrant workers in Nigeria by following up on recommendations from the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) and CMW.

The workshop aims amongst others to enhance stakeholders’ understanding of the rights enshrined in the Migrant Workers’ Convention and the 2023 CMW concluding observations.

According to Sawa, it is also to equip participants with the knowledge, tools, and strategies to effectively monitor the implementation of these recommendations by the Nigerian government.

The workshop is also aimed at developing a follow-up matrix for tracking CMW’s concluding observations and Informing stakeholders about the outcomes of the 45th UPR session and the recommendations presented to Nigeria.

During the first day sessions, Jennifer Aga of NHRC led discussions on the role of government agencies, civil society, and national human rights institutions in implementing the CMW recommendations. Meanwhile, Esther Michael Sawa provided an overview of the Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.

The workshop serves as a critical step toward ensuring that Nigeria upholds its international obligations and strengthens the protection of migrant workers’ rights within the country.

The workshop participants are drawn from federal ministries of Justice, information, youth development; Nigeria Customs Service; Nigerian Police; Immigration services and civil society organisations.